Shaking hands

I don't like it. It's not the first thing I think about when meeting someone. I'm usually taken aback. And a "firm handshake"? It's just a firm handshake- not a window to your soul.

• You're weird.

  Everyone

• "Taken aback" by shaking hands? What universe do you live in, OP?

• I bet Op would rather sniff the person's butt

  Fido

• I totally agree, OP, but then again I have Asperger's. I have a weak handshake, don't like the physical contact and don't make eye contact when I shake hands.

• I agree with you, OP. Barbaric, unsanitary practice. The single worst part of being male.

• I should have known my landlord was evil when I shoot hands with him. He had catcher's mitt hands.

• I'm a frail and delicate orchid!

  Op

• If you don't like "shaking hands," I'd advise you to avoid. Hanging aroundMichael J. Fox.

• It's a sign of a person's character. Aside from someone with Aspergers or a "reason" for it, a weak handshake indicates a tepid, milquetoast personality. Not a leader. Not a strong personality. Not always true and not always accurate but accurate enough. If one has never been TAUGHT to have a firm grip handshake, woe be to him. I cannot stand a limp wrist/dead fish handshake. Eeauuwww. It does not have to be one of those "pump your arm until it rips out of the socket" types of athletic handshakes, just a firm grip and focused eye contact. For both men and women. It someone does not look me in the eyes when I am introduced and smile at me, I am instantly put off and registering a negative mental impression. It might be a wrong one, but you only get one chance to make a first impression.

• Howie Mandel posts here?

• How very John Wayne of you, R9. I actually immediately dislike people with firm handshakes. They strike me as ass-kissers.

• r11, what kind of handshake DO you like, Goldilocks?

• Funny, week hand shakes strike me as ass kissers.

• None at all, R12. And don't get me started on the overhugging menace that's creeping through society. I was watching a football game the other day and the opposing players hugged each other right before the coin toss. Ridiculous.

• What about the handshake where you touch the person's arm with the other hand while you are shaking. Do you think that is nice, or pushy and creepy?

• I hate when I shake someone's hand and I feel like I'm shaking a dead body. It seems so one sided to shake a dead fish hand. FFS, if you're shaking someone's hand, at least act alive!

• When I shake hands I use my left hand to go in and grab the person between the elbow and tricep and squeeze while I'm shaking their hand.. It's a lot more intimate without being overfriendly. A nice variation.

• I like to wiggle my ring finger against the other person's palm.

• [quote]If one has never been TAUGHT to have a firm grip handshake, woe be to him. Mary!

• Back in the day they bowed, not unlike the Japanese today. Thomas Jefferson was the first president to introduce handshaking, Washington and Adams who preceded him used bowing. I guess the abbreviated version of bowing today would be a head nod. I can take or leave hand shakes and if someone has a firm shake that's ok; if someone has a kind of soft/limp one it's not the end of the world for me as it seems to be for some (I think those types must be from Texas or something), but I prefer something firmer as far as handshakes go--the limp ones are sort of amusing and leave me wondering where they learned to shake hands. Now men's asses are a different story as far as firmness or softness is concerned.....

  anonymous

• I always find it funny when someone i'm shaking hands with tries to have a firmer handshake then me or they literally try to crush my hand. I WILL win that fight.

• "And a "firm handshake"? It's just a firm handshake- not a window to your soul." Perhaps it's not a window into the soul, but other people seem to place importance on it, so if you don't want to look like a child you better grow a pair.

• I like you r21

• A weak handshake is a career killer.

  Corner%20Office

• Op is incessantly aghast.

  Well%2C%20I%20never%21

• I'd prefer not to shake hands. I'm not a germaphobe, but I always think about what the other person may have on their hands. I prefer a just a slight wave and a nod of the head. I really don't want to shake your hand. No offense, I'd just rather not.

• I worked as a legislative aide so I had to meet all kinds of people: lobbyists, constituents, etc. Some of them apparently thought the firmer their grip, the more sincere they would be in their presentation, so I got my hand crushed many times.

• A flaccid,apathetic handshake and a vigorous,clamped handshake are more telling of a personality than the Myers Brigg could EVER hope to be.

• I hate shaking hands with clammy/sweaty people, and smokers. Awful feeling. People who overdo it with a firm handshake are the types who believe all the crap they heard at their last motivational seminar.

• A friend of mine got AIDS by shaking hands with a 'mo.

• Oh no, the idiotic 'mo troll is back.

• So, R5 -- women don't shake hands?

  Your%20%28female%29%20boss

• r30 and r31 have the same IP address

• It's his father R31. *slap* It's his lover. *slap* It's his father and lover!

• [quote] And a "firm handshake"? It's just a firm handshake- not a window to your soul. Like the Chris Rock joke about the mother bragging, "I take care of my kids! I've never been to jail!", a firm handshake is significant only by its absence. Being handed a clammy, cold fish of limp hand with a begrudging look (which never meets your eyes directly) turns a simple greeting that shouldn't bear a lot of thought and certainly no malingering regret or dread into an icky, unpleasant experience with a fucking creep.

• Donald Trump doesn't shake hands.

• And this is why we don't respond to trolls, R33.

• Some 'mo wanted to shake my hand and I was like, "Get your sweaty AIDS hands away from me." You know how 'mos is when they get near a norm. They get all excited.

• How about upon meeting a cute guy we can all, in addition to shaking his hand, give his ass a smack and a squeeze?! Actually, re the politicians--I have read that Bill Clinton has shaken so many hands in his life that his right hand has arthritis probably at least partly because of it. I wouldn't be surprised if other politicians have it too. Question--I wonder how many contestants hands Alex Trebek has shaken in all his time as host of Jeopardy?

  anon

• Secret: homophobes will often not extend their hands to a gay.

• r32, in my experience, a much smaller percentage of women shake hands than men do. Others might not find that to be true. I live in the South, by the way; there might be regional differences.

• Shaking hands spreads the flu. Don't do it. People are dropping like flies this week. A simple nod, smile (without showing your teeth) and "How do you do?" is sufficient--not just during the flu season, but always.

• I'ts much better to do the Vulcan salute.

  Spock

• You should do what 'mos do when they meet each other. They bend over and stick their faces in the other guy's ass.

• ReVolting

  Violet%2C%20Dowager%20Countess%20of%20Grantham

• "Anybody can say, 'hi, I'm Howard." "Well, anyone named Howard." "You are going to take his hand and in a firm MASCULINE handshake say, 'It's an honor to meet you.'"

  Eunice Burns

• OP expects a quick curtsy and twirl. After all, it's what she does.

• Extend your wrist toward their chin with your palm down and say "Enchanté."

  Anomynous%20

• A man should not extend his hand to a woman.

  Manners, Post, and Vanderbilt

• My mom refuses to go to church during flu season because of that damned "sign of peace" handshake you have to do.

• Try a fist bump.

  Khalil

• I hate when someone is so quick to show off their firm handshake that they don't wait for your hands to be fully in place before gripping, and they end up just mashing your fingers together.